Census Adds More Phone Lines for Spanish-Speaking

Inundated with calls from Spanish-speaking residents seeking census questionnaires written in their native language, the U.S. Census Bureau has expanded its nationwide telephone network to handle the mounting inquiries.

The bureau’s decision to more than triple the number of telephone lines came after it was unable to answer an avalanche of phone calls over the weekend from Latino residents across the country, census officials said.

On Friday and Saturday, the Mexican-American Legal Defense and Educational Fund sent angry correspondence to the bureau’s headquarters in Suitland, Md., demanding that something be done to clear the special toll-free telephone lines for the Spanish-speaking, who must contact the agency to order a census form in Spanish.

Officials with MALDEF, a Los Angeles-based Latino-rights organization, said they monitored the census bureau’s telephone network by having people call the toll-free line in eight cities--Los Angeles, Chicago, Detroit, Phoenix, San Antonio, San Diego, San Francisco and Tucson.

“This is a fiasco,” said Berta Saavedra, MALDEF’s California census coordinator. “We’re really concerned that anyone Spanish-speaking who wants a form is going to have trouble getting one. We’re concerned they will become frustrated and decide just not to bother with the census.”

The Census Bureau handles the bulk of the Spanish calls at processing centers in San Diego and Jacksonville, Fla., according to Larry Bryant, a bureau spokesman at the regional office in Van Nuys. In addition, the San Diego office answers most of the phone calls from residents across the United States who speak Asian languages.

“We do not have an unlimited number of lines,” Bryant said. “But it is our intention to serve anyone that calls.”

Officials at MCI Telecommunications Corp., which is handling the toll-free telephone network for the census, said it appears the problem stemmed simply from a lack of lines.

“I don’t think the bureau quite expected the reaction they got on these Spanish-language lines,” said Michelle Payer, an MCI spokeswoman. “There was simply not enough capacity for all those calls to reach their destinations.”

Officials at MALDEF are eager to ensure that Latino residents in the United States are counted in the census, which is used to determine political apportionment and how more than $70 billion in federal funds are distributed.